Using Electric Fields to Treat Tumors: Combining Standard and Innovative Treatments
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Using Electric Fields to Treat Tumors: Combining Standard and Innovative Treatments

ByHolly Zink

Mesothelioma is a rare cancer and standard therapies are limited. So most patients consider one or more different treatments. Different types of therapies can be used and they are usually not exclusive. Mesothelioma patients can move from one type to another. And, if their doctors agree, can sometimes use them in combination. One of the non-standard treatment therapies is the use of electric fields. Tumor-treating electric fields can disrupt cancer cell division. This treatment is approved for mesothelioma treatment. A new combination of treatments has recently been proposed. Does the combination of tumor-treating fields with a standard treatment effective? A new global clinical trial combined tumor-treating fields with sorafenib. This medication blocks cell protein signals to prevent cancer cells from…

Treatment Options Improving in the ‘New Era’ for Mesothelioma
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Treatment Options Improving in the ‘New Era’ for Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

Calling it a “new era” for malignant pleural mesothelioma, doctors from four of the nation’s top cancer centers have just published an update on treatment options for this rare disease.  The article was prepared by mesothelioma experts at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas, NYU Langone Medical Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York and the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.  The article in the Journal of Clinical Oncology highlights the recent FDA approvals of a new medical device and a new immunotherapy combination for pleural mesothelioma. The authors say these and other advances are “generating momentum” to find better mesothelioma therapies.  Tumor Treating Fields Changing the Game Pleural mesothelioma is fast-growing and difficult to treat. Mesothelioma rarely responds…

Researchers Pinpoint Optimal Frequency Using TTFields for Mesothelioma Treatment

Researchers Pinpoint Optimal Frequency Using TTFields for Mesothelioma Treatment

ByAlex Strauss

The makers of TTFields for mesothelioma treatment have released a new report that sheds light on how the therapy can be most effective.  TTFields stands for “Tumor Treating Fields”. It is a device that emits intermediate frequency alternating electrical fields. These fields are designed to disrupt cancer DNA and shrink tumors.  The FDA approved TTFields for mesothelioma treatment in 2019. At the time, it was the first new treatment for this intractable cancer since 2004. It is still the only non-invasive treatment for pleural mesothelioma.  The new report from researchers at Novocure may help doctors use TTFields more effectively for their patients with inoperable mesothelioma. TTFields for Mesothelioma Treatment The Tumor Treating Fields approach was first used to treat glioblastoma….

Study Reveals How TTFields and Chemotherapy Fight Mesothelioma
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Study Reveals How TTFields and Chemotherapy Fight Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

TTFields and chemotherapy offer one of the most potent combinations against malignant mesothelioma tumors. Now a new study reveals why they work so well together.  Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) are low intensity, intermediate frequency, alternating electric fields. They are delivered into the chest of mesothelioma patients with a vest-like device marketed under the brand name Optune Lua.  In 2019, a combination of TTFields and chemotherapy became the first new FDA-approved treatment for mesothelioma in 15 years.  Now, a new report in the journal Lung Cancer sheds light on the synergy between the two modes of mesothelioma treatment.  Combating Cancer with Electrical Currents The Tumor Treating Fields approach was created by Jersey-based Novocure. The technology uses electrical fields to destabilize critical…

Keytruda and Tumor Treating Fields: New Hope for Mesothelioma?
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Keytruda and Tumor Treating Fields: New Hope for Mesothelioma?

ByAlex Strauss

There is hope that a new lung cancer trial combining Keytruda and Tumor Treating Fields could lead to a new treatment for pleural mesothelioma.  Recent studies show Keytruda (pembrolizumab) is one of the most promising immunotherapy drugs against malignant mesothelioma. Electrical device Tumor Treating Fields is only the second treatment to receive FDA approval for mesothelioma.  This summer, the manufacturers of these two treatments announced they would team up. They will test Keytruda and Tumor Treating Fields in patients with non-small cell lung cancer. The results could impact the future of mesothelioma treatment, too. Two Promising Therapies: Keytruda Keytruda is an immunotherapy drug. It blocks a protein called PD-1. Many types of cancer cells overproduce PD-1 to evade the immune…

Skin Side Effects of TTFields Mesothelioma Treatment

Skin Side Effects of TTFields Mesothelioma Treatment

ByAlex Strauss

A new report has some advice for dealing with the possible skin side effects of the newest FDA-approved mesothelioma treatment, Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields). TTFields, or Optune Lua, is an antimitotic treatment for asbestos cancer. It generates alternating electrical fields that disrupt the cancer cells’ ability to divide. TTFields is also approved for a type of brain cancer called glioblastoma.   The new report says skin side effects like itching, sweating, and dry skin, can cause people to stop the treatment. Dealing with those problems effectively could improve survival for mesothelioma patients.  How TTF Works Pleural mesothelioma tumors grow on the membrane around the lungs. Alimta is the only FDA-approved medicine for mesothelioma. It received approval in 2004.  The Optune Lua…

Tumor Treating Fields for Mesothelioma Still on Track Amidst COVID-19
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Tumor Treating Fields for Mesothelioma Still on Track Amidst COVID-19

ByAlex Strauss

The company that developed tumor treating fields for mesothelioma says it is still making, supporting, and studying the device in spite of the global pandemic.  Last month, Novocure even announced a new name for the electricity-based mesothelioma therapy. Tumor treating fields or the NovoTTF-100L System will now go by the brand name Optune Lua.  “Optune Lua is easy to pronounce and remember, and should help patients, caregivers and providers ask for the treatment by name,” says Pritesh Shah, Novocure’s Chief Commercial Officer.  Novocure says they are following all WHO and CDC recommendations to keep producing tumor treating fields for mesothelioma patients who need it.  What is Optune Lua? Tumor treating fields for mesothelioma uses specific frequencies of electric fields to…

Tumor Treating Fields for Mesothelioma Faces Criticism
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Tumor Treating Fields for Mesothelioma Faces Criticism

ByAlex Strauss

Tumor Treating Fields for mesothelioma is coming under fire from some other researchers. The treatment uses electricity to interfere with division of cancer cells. The FDA approved it for mesothelioma last year under the Humanitarian Device Exemption. It is only the second treatment ever approved for asbestos cancer.  But scientists in Italy and the Netherlands are disputing some of the findings from the STELLAR trial of TTFields. They published separate articles in a recent issue of The Lancet Oncology. STELLAR tested Tumor Treating Fields along with chemotherapy as a novel mesothelioma treatment. The FDA based its approval on the STELLAR results.  But the newly published articles suggest that there were problems with the trial. Both say Tumor Treating Fields is…

TTFields Treatment for Mesothelioma: Physician Acceptance is Critical
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TTFields Treatment for Mesothelioma: Physician Acceptance is Critical

ByAlex Strauss

A new article suggests that non-invasive TTFields treatment for mesothelioma has the potential to save lives – as long as enough physicians accept it.  TTFields stands for Tumor Treating Fields. It is an electricity-based treatment approved by the FDA for use along with standard mesothelioma chemotherapy.  Cancer researchers from West Cancer Center and Research Institute wrote the new article for The Oncologist. They say the success of TTFields treatment for mesothelioma depends on doctors learning the logistics of using it.  How Does TTFields Treatment for Mesothelioma Work? TTFields use low-intensity alternating electric fields. When these electric fields hit a mesothelioma tumor, they disrupt normal cell division. If cancer cells cannot divide properly, they are less likely to spread out of…

Tumor Treating Fields Win FDA Approval for Mesothelioma Treatment
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Tumor Treating Fields Win FDA Approval for Mesothelioma Treatment

ByAlex Strauss

The FDA has approved an electricity-based mesothelioma treatment known as Tumor Treating Fields (NovoTTF-100L). The treatment is approved for use along with standard mesothelioma chemotherapy. It is the first new treatment for pleural mesothelioma since the approval of Alimta (pemetrexed) in 2004. Approval of NovoTTF-100L was based on the promising results of the STELLAR phase 2 mesothelioma clinical trial. Those results, released in April, were even better than expected. Electricity is the Basis of Tumor Treating Fields The Tumor Treating Fields approach was created by Jersey-based Novocure. It first found success in the treatment of the deadly brain cancer glioblastoma. The technology uses electrical fields to destabilize critical proteins responsible for cell division. When these proteins cannot do their job,…